A member of the Gamay clan of the Guugu Yimithirr people,[2] Deeral was born at Hope Vale Lutheran Mission in Cape York, Queensland and educated at Woorabinda, to which he was evacuated during World War II.
[2] At a meeting of Guugu Yimithirr clans on Palm Island, Queensland in 1964, elders decided to become more politically involved and nominated Deeral to run for parliament.
[4] Deeral's victory was considered to be due to the proposal of Labor Prime Minister Gough Whitlam's plan to realign Australia's Torres Strait border with Papua New Guinea.
[7] At the election, Deeral lost his seat in a swing away from the Nationals, with the deferral of the eye health program given as a factor in the loss.
[2] From 1998 to 2003, Deeral was a member of the Wet Tropics Management Authority Board and in July 2002 was appointed interim chair of the Yalanji Ang-Narra Yimidihirr Peoples Council, as well as taking an active role as a Guugu Yimithirr elder.